Fresno Valves & Castings, Inc.

What Fresno Valves & Castings, Inc. does

Fresno Valves & Castings, Inc. is a family-owned, private US manufacturer of irrigation products, engineered water control gates, and brass and bronze castings, headquartered in Selma, California since 1974 and traceable to a 1952 founding by O.R. "Dick" Showalter Jr. The company's product portfolio is organized around several core lines: FLOW-GUARD stainless-steel filtration products (sand media, gravity screen, and pressurized screen filters, strainers, and sand separators with the brand leading the segment since 1986); engineered and standard Gates & Lifts (slide, combo, line, shear, flap, radial, bulkhead, and custom fabricated gates for canals, ditches, and flood control); the PIERCE FITTINGS line acquired in 1997 (pipeline fittings, butterfly valves, chemigation check valves, and Wedge-Tite couplers); a diversified Valves category (overflow, ball, gate, air vents, pressure relief, Grayline butterfly, check, control valves, hydrants, dairy flush, and J-95 micro sprayers); and a jobbing foundry service pouring various copper alloys (C83600, C86300, C86500, C87500, C87600, C90300, C92200). The 30,000 sq ft Selma foundry is the largest brass and bronze jobbing foundry west of the Mississippi, integrated with a 10,000 sq ft CNC machine shop and a 15,000 sq ft fabrication shop, with melt capacity of 30,000 lbs per shift, automatic molding at up to 125 molds per hour, and in-house spectrographic analysis on every pour.

The business operates through three revenue streams: custom-engineered fabricated gates sold to specification; standard irrigation products (filters, valves, fittings) distributed through the company's own sales network; and jobbing foundry services supplying custom sand castings to customers in irrigation, pool & spa, automotive, lighting, tools, maritime, surveillance, HVAC, pumping, petroleum, and natural gas. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, and there is no e-commerce or digital channel — distribution runs through eight regional US sales offices (Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Oregon, Texas, Washington, and California) staffed by dedicated territory managers for Irrigation, Fabricated Gates, and Foundry product lines. Customer concentration is horizontally diversified across agricultural irrigation (primary), industrial jobbing (primary), municipal water management, and dairy/livestock operations. The company is privately held with approximately 250 employees across eight states, no external institutional investment, no software or AI product surface, and no public financial disclosures.

Name

Fresno Valves & Castings, Inc.

Legal name

Fresno Valves & Castings, Inc.

Website

https://fresnovalves.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1952

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Fresno Valves & Castings is a family-owned US manufacturer of irrigation filtration products, water control gates, valves, and brass and bronze castings, serving agricultural, municipal, and industrial customers through eight regional sales offices and an in-house non-ferrous foundry.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Irrigation Equipment & Water Control Manufacturing

NAICS

Metal Valve Manufacturing (33291), Industrial Valve Manufacturing (332911), Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (22131)

SIC

Pumps & Pumping Equipment (3561)

akta.pro primary industry

Valves, Regulators & Backflow Prevention (Control Valves, Pressure Regulators, Check/Backflow) (AFABAHAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Plumbing Valves & Controls (Shutoff, Mixing, Backflow) (IMADALAB), Seals, Valves & Auxiliary Components (for Pumps/Compressors) (IMAHANAH)

Keywords

• Irrigation valves
• Water control gates
• Brass bronze castings
• Filtration systems
• Pipeline fittings

Headquarters

HQ city

Selma

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Fabricated Gates (Engineered to Order): Custom-engineered fabricated gates designed and built to exact specifications. Available in carbon steel, galvanized carbon steel, stainless steel, and aluminum. Includes slide gates, radial gates, canal gates, combination gates, flap gates, bulkhead gates, and hand pull gates.
2. Standard Irrigation Products: Standard product lines including FLOW-GUARD filters, valves (overflow, ball, gate, check, control, butterfly, air vents), PIERCE fittings, and irrigation components sold as individual units or systems.
3. Brass & Bronze Foundry Services: Jobbing foundry producing custom sand castings for customers in irrigation, pool & spa, automotive, lighting, tools, maritime, surveillance, HVAC, pumping, petroleum, and natural gas industries. The largest brass jobbing foundry west of the Mississippi.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Fresno Valves & Castings, Inc. manufactures and sells irrigation products (valves, filters, fittings), engineered water control gates, and operates the largest brass and bronze jobbing foundry west of the Mississippi. The company produces stainless steel filtration products under the FLOW-GUARD brand, pipeline fittings under the PIERCE FITTINGS brand, butterfly valves under the Grayline brand, and custom fabricated gates for irrigation, municipal and industrial water management.

Product overview

Fresno Valves & Castings, Inc. is a manufacturer of irrigation products and engineered water control gates with a diversified portfolio organized around several core product lines and acquired brands. The primary offerings include FLOW-GUARD filtration products (sand media filters, gravity screen filters, pressurized screen filters, strainers, and sand separators), comprehensive Gates & Lifts solutions (slide gates, combo gates, line gates, shear gates, flap gates, lifts, and custom fabricated gates), and the PIERCE FITTINGS product line (acquired in 1997) covering pipeline fittings, butterfly valves, chemigation valves, and Wedge-Tite couplers. The company also produces a wide range of Valves including overflow valves, ball and gate valves, air vents, pressure relief valves, Grayline butterfly valves, check valves, control valves, hydrants, and dairy flush valves. Complementing these, J-95 Micro Sprayers serve low volume irrigation needs. Fresno Valves & Castings operates the largest brass and bronze foundry west of the Mississippi, providing casting services in various copper alloys, and maintains machine shop and fabrication shop capabilities for both production and custom work.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FLOW-GUARD: Stainless steel filtration products for irrigation systems, including sand media filters, gravity screen filters, pressurized screen filters, strainers, and sand separators. Led the industry in quality and performance since 1985.
• PIERCE FITTINGS
• Grayline

Products and services

• FLOW-GUARD Filtration Products A comprehensive line of stainless steel filtration products for irrigation systems including sand media filters, gravity screen filters, pressurized screen filters, basket and line strainers, and sand separators, designed to remove organic and inorganic contaminants from agricultural water sources.
• Gates & Lifts Water control gates and lifts including slide and combo gates, line and shear gates, flap gates, handwheel lifts, and fabricated gates for canals, ditches, flood control, and low-head industrial water management applications.
• Custom Fabricated Gates Custom-engineered fabricated gates designed and built to exact specifications, including fabricated slide (Series 8200), canal (Series 7600), combination (Series 7700), radial/Tainter, bulkhead/stop log, fabricated flap (Series 5900), overshot, and hand pull gates, available in carbon steel, galvanized steel, stainless steel, and aluminum for large openings and specialized water control applications.
• PIERCE FITTINGS A comprehensive line of irrigation fittings including pipeline fittings (4 to 12 inches, galvanized flanged, epoxy-coated, ring-lock and universal latch systems), butterfly line valves and valve openers, chemigation valves with air vents, check valves, and Wedge-Tite repair couplers.
• Valves A comprehensive line of water control valves including overflow valves (Clover, Valley, Grazing, Alfalfa), brass and PVC ball and gate valves, air vents and pressure relief valves, Grayline Series 8500 wafer-style butterfly valves, swing and wafer check valves, Series 9300 linear flow control valves, universal portable hydrants, and dairy flush valves.
• J-95 Micro Sprayers Low volume irrigation micro sprayers providing precise water distribution with a wide range of flow rates and distribution patterns for field applications and low-volume irrigation systems.
• Brass & Bronze Foundry Casting Services Jobbing foundry producing custom sand castings in copper alloys for irrigation, pool & spa, automotive, lighting, tools, maritime, surveillance, HVAC, pumping, petroleum, and natural gas industries. Alloys include Leaded Red Brass (C83600), Manganese Bronze (C86300, C86500), Silicon Bronze (C87500, C87600), Tin Bronze (C90300), and Leaded Tin Bronze (C92200).
• Machine Shop and Fabrication Services A 10,000 sq ft full-service machine shop with CNC and manual capabilities plus a 15,000 sq ft fabrication shop specializing in stainless steel, carbon steel, and aluminum, providing first article and in-process inspection with quality procedures for both internal production and external custom work.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Hunter Industries: Family-owned manufacturer of irrigation products for landscape, agricultural, and golf applications, including valves, rotors, and controllers. Comparable as a privately held, family-controlled irrigation equipment manufacturer with similar product breadth.
• Rain Bird Corporation: Privately held manufacturer of irrigation products including sprinklers, valves, filters, and controllers. Direct competitor in agricultural and commercial irrigation filtration, valves, and water control components.
• Lindsay Corporation: Manufacturer of irrigation equipment including center pivot and lateral move systems, as well as water management infrastructure. Directly comparable as a US-based irrigation equipment manufacturer serving agricultural water management customers with engineered solutions.
• Senninger Irrigation: Manufacturer of agricultural irrigation products including pressure regulators, sprinklers, and valves. Directly comparable as a US-based agricultural irrigation component manufacturer serving similar grower and irrigation district customers.

Broad incumbents

• The Toro Company: Public manufacturer of turf, landscape, and agricultural irrigation equipment including valves, sprinklers, and controls. Overlaps with Fresno's agricultural and landscape irrigation valve and water control product portfolio.
• Valmont Industries: Global manufacturer of irrigation equipment, infrastructure products, and coatings. The Valley brand of center pivot irrigation systems competes for the same agricultural customers, while the company's infrastructure division addresses municipal water and transportation markets.
• Mueller Industries: Large US manufacturer of copper, brass, aluminum, and plastic products serving plumbing, HVAC, and industrial markets. Comparable as a vertically integrated copper-alloy manufacturer with foundry capabilities serving similar end markets including irrigation, plumbing, and industrial customers.
• Jain Irrigation Systems: Global manufacturer of irrigation systems, plastic piping, and agricultural technology. Larger-scale competitor offering integrated irrigation solutions to similar agricultural markets, particularly in drip and micro-irrigation.
• Watts Water Technologies: Public manufacturer of water conservation, treatment, and flow control products including valves and fittings for plumbing, heating, and irrigation. Overlaps with Fresno's brass valve and water control product lines serving similar commercial and industrial buyers.

Regional players

• Aqua Control (Florida): Manufacturer and distributor of irrigation and water management products. Comparable as a regional irrigation equipment manufacturer serving overlapping agricultural customer segments, with overlap in valve and filtration offerings.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fresno Valves & Castings, Inc.